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LAMAR UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES Issue 1News from5BiologyArmacost received his Ph.D. from IllinoisState and M.S. from Mississippi State, bothin biology, and his B.S. in zoology fromLouisiana State University. He has been atLamar University since 2007 teaching coursesin ornithology, conservation biology, tropicalforest ecology, avian ecology, birdconservation, and invasion ecology, and hehas served as a member of the FacultyLearning Committee on Sustainability.Elisabeth MaxwellElisabeth Maxwell, Beaumont Biologymajor and Lamar Ambassador, received theMarian Beane/Charles Gliozzo DomesticStudent Award for InternationalAchievement. This is an award given by thePhi Beta Delta International Scholars HonorsSociety to one student member at thenational level. Maxwell accepted the awardat the society’s national convention in NorthCarolina April 11-13.Maxwell spent three months on the coast ofSouth Africa working with a sharkconservancy in 2011 and spent the summer inMozambique working with a Marine MegaFauna field research station in 2012 as part ofher research for the Beck Fellowship, Lamar’smost prestigious undergraduate honor.The creation of the new office and position ispart of Lamar’s strategic plan to promotesustainability in all aspects of university life,following Leadership in Energy andEnvironmental Design (LEED) principles inrenovation and construction projectswhenever feasible, and establishing arecharging station on campus.Dr. Ashwini KucknoorAmanda Posey joined the department in2012 as Instructor. She received both herundergraduate and master’s degree fromLamar. She is also the coordinator of theAnatomy and Physiology laboratories.Dr. Mike Warren, Professor of Biology andformer chair of the department, retired in2011. He holds the distinction of being thelongest serving department chair at Lamar.Atlantic CroakerDr. Paul Nicoletto, Professor of Biology,became interim chair of the department in2012. He has been at Lamar 17 years. He iscurrently working with a McNair studentscholar researching sound production inAtlantic Croaker. The research involvesrecording sounds the fish make andanalyzing those sounds to detect patterns ofcommunication.Dr. Ian Lian joins the department in 2013 asAssistant Professor specializing in cellbiology. His research is in stem cells andlooking for new ways to change non-stemcells into stem cells. He will teach courses incell biology and anatomy and physiology.Dr. Jim ArmacostLamar University has created a new officeof sustainability with the goal of making theuniversity as efficient and environmentallyfriendly as possible. Steve Doblin, Provostand Vice President of Academic Affairs,named Jim Armacost, Associate Professor ofBiology, the university’s first Director ofSustainability.Dr. Ashwini Kucknoor joined thedepartment in 2011 as Assistant Professorspecializing in microbiology. She teachesmicrobiology, immunology and molecularbiology.New computer labA new computer laboratory with 10 PCs wasestablished on the second floor of theBiology building in 2012. This followed theremodeling of the department office suite in2012. Other additions to facilities includesmart desks in classrooms, wirelessnetworking in the building and projectors inall classrooms.

LAMAR UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES Issue 16News from ChemistryandBiochemistryScott and Patricia Groben are bothpractitioners in the field of chemistry.Patricia Groben graduated in 1969 with aBachelor of Science degree in chemistry fromLamar. Her husband, Scott, graduated fromOregon State University in 1980 with a B.S.degree in chemical engineering.University. Her husband will also be joiningLamar in 2013 as an adjunct in the Physicsdepartment.Dr. Paul Bernazzani, Associate Professor ofChemistry, became chair of the departmentin 2010. He has been at Lamar 10 years. Hisresearch is in molecular behavior ofmacromolecules (biological as well assynthetic plastics).Dr. Thi Thuy Minh NguyenDr. Paul Bernazzani with the NuclearMagnetic Resonance InstrumentDr. Thi Thuy Minh Nguyen was promotedfrom Instructor to Assistant Professor ofBiochemistry in 2012.The department took delivery of a 400KNuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) machinein 2010 funded via university HEAF funds.The device is used in analyzing materials andis being used in both undergraduate andgraduate research. Another device added in2013 is the Gas Chromagrophy MassSpectrometer (GCMS).Both the NMR and GCMS are used by facultyand students in a new undergraduateresearch-based course the departmentadded in 2012. The new course is requiredfor majors and features one-on-onecollaboration with a faculty membersupervising the student’s individual researchproject.Dr. Jose Andino joined the department inDr. P. ChandrasekaranDr. Perumalreddy Chandrasekaran joinedthe department in 2012 as AssistantProfessor of Chemistry specializing in organicchemistry.2012 as Instructor of Chemistry specializingin organic chemistry. He received his Ph.D.from Indiana University.Ms. Paula Scrougham joined thedepartment as Senior AdministrativeAssociate in March 2013. She previouslyworked as an administrative assistant atTexas Tech graduate school.Dr. Keith Hansen, Professor of Chemistryand former department chair for 21 years,retired in 2011.The Scott and Patricia Groben Scholarshipin Chemistry was established in 2013 to assiststudents seeking a degree in chemistry.Dr. Dale Ortego, Professor of Chemistry,retired in 2011.“We are very excited to hear about theestablishment of this new endowedscholarship,” said Paul Bernazzani, Chair ofthe Department of Chemistry. “Manypromising students at Lamar need financialrelief for our rigorous science programs. Ipredict that the Groben Scholarship will helpeducate a new generation of students andlead them to fruitful careers in the sciences.”Dr. Ozge Gunaydin-SenDr. Ozge Gunaydin-Sen joined thedepartment in 2013 as Assistant Professor ofChemistry specializing in physical chemistry.She received her Ph.D. from Florida StateDr. John Whittle, Professor of Chemistryand former director of Risk Management,retired in 2011.Ms. Sherry Li, Instructor of Chemistry,retired in 2012.

LAMAR UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES Issue 1News from7Computer ScienceDr. Stefan Andrei, Associate Professor ofDr. Lawrence Osborne, returned to theComputer Science, became chair of thedepartment in 2013. His research is insoftware engineering, program analysis, realtime embedded systems, and foundations ofcomputer science. After earning hisbachelor’s and master’s degrees from CuzaUniversity of Iasi in Romania and his doctoraldegree from Hamburg University inGermany, Dr. Andrei began his professionalcareer at Lamar University in 2007.faculty in 2012 after serving as chair of thedepartment and graduate advisor for 20years. Under Dr. Osborne’s leadership thedepartment earned accreditation from theAccrediting Board for Engineering andTechnology (ABET), starting in 2001. In hisnew role, Dr. Osborne continues to serve as aprogram evaluator for ABET, chair of theuniversity IT committee and chair of thedepartment curriculum committee.Dr. Andrei was recently recognized by theSenior Member Committee of theAssociation for Computing Machinery (ACM).The world’s largest educational and scientificcomputing society, ACM delivers resourcesthat advance computing as a science and aprofession. Its senior member program, aninternational recognition initiated in 2006,includes members with at least 10 years ofprofessional experience who havedemonstrated performance that sets themapart from their peers through technicalleadership, and technical or professionalcontributions.Dr. Timothy RodenDr. Timothy Roden, Associate Professor inComputer Science, joined the department in2012. His Ph.D. is from University of NorthTexas. Before coming to Lamar he served for5 years at Angelo State University (ASU) asdirector and chair of the ASU ComputerScience Department. Dr. Roden’s research isin computer games and graphics. While atASU, he established a nationally recognizedprogram in computer game development.Dr. Roden’s goals coming to Lamar are tobuild the preeminent game developmentprogram in Texas. Lamar has approved fournew undergraduate courses in computergame development and has established thenew Entertainment Computing Laboratory inthe Maes building on the second floor. Thenew lab will be used in teaching andresearch.Sign language system created by Dr.Stefan AndreiDr. Andrei, along with Lamar faculty coauthors Dr. Larry Osborne (ComputerScience) and Dr. Zanthia Smith (DeafStudies), published a paper entitled“Designing an American Sign LanguageAvatar for Learning Computer ScienceConcepts for Deaf or Hard-of-HearingStudents and Deaf Interpreters” in theJournal of Educational Multimedia andHypermedia in July. The paper describesresearch in creating a 3D animated signlanguage avatar. The research was jointlyfunded by Lamar University and AcademicPartnerships.Mrs. Denise RodeMrs. Denise Rode joined the department in2012 as a Senior Administrative Associate,transferring from the Lamar Provost’s office.Mrs. Rode previously worked for the TexasYouth Commission for 15 years.“With its location so close to a majormetropolitan center, Lamar is positioned tobecome the leading school in Texas to traincomputer game developers,” said Roden.“I’m excited to be a part of something as bigas I know this is going to be for Lamar and forBeaumont.”Texas is the second largest state in the U.S.in terms of the number of computer gamedevelopment companies. With big namessuch Electronic Arts and SonyEntertainment, among others, Texas hasestablished itself as a premiere locale for theentertainment software industry.(From left) Reza Shakouri, MatthewWilliamson, and Zebulun Barnett

LAMAR UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES Issue 1Three Lamar University Computer ScienceLamar University honored Peggymajors placed in the Top 20 at theAssociation on Computing Machinery’sSouth Central Regional ProgrammingContest at Louisiana State University in fall2012. They were coached by Dr. StefanAndrei.Doerschuk, Professor of Computer Science,as the 2011 University Professor, withofficials applauding her as an innovative andaccomplished researcher as well as a teacherand mentor who has deeply touched the livesof her students. The professorship, awardedfor life, is the university’s most prestigiousfaculty award and recognizes an outstandingsenior professor for academic excellence,according to Stephen Doblin, provost andvice president for academic affairs.Demetrius TaylorDemetrius Taylor, Lamar Computer Sciencesenior from Dayton, earned third place inthinternational competition at the 44 ACMTechnical Symposium on Computer ScienceEducation March 9 in Denver, Colo. Theannual symposium, sponsored by theAssociation for Computing Machinery’sSpecial Interest Group on Computer ScienceEducation, is the premiere showcase forcomputing education in the United States.In addition to being a past McNair Scholar,Taylor is webmaster for the STAIRSTEPprogram at Lamar University. He is alsowebmaster of the Association for ComputerMachinery and the treasurer of Upsilon PiEpsilon. A member of the INSPIRED programfor four years, he served as coordinator forseveral summer high school computingacademies hosted by the program.“Dr. Doerschuk has served Lamarextraordinarily well and has done so for morethan 17 years,” Doblin said. “Her mark ofexcellence is apparent throughout theuniversity – in the courses she has taught, theleadership she has provided, the scholarshipshe has conducted, the funding she hassecured, the programs she has directed, therelations she has cultivated and, in big waysand small, the students she has educated.”Dr. Jiangjiang (Jane) LiuDr. Jiangjiang Liu, Associate Professor inComputer Science, was awarded a NationalScience Foundation (NSF) Career award in2009. Dr. Liu is the only Lamar facultymember ever to receive the prestigious fouryear NSF award. As part of the grant, Dr. Liuhas hosted an annual summer workshop forK-12 teachers.Computer Science faculty member MyersForeman passed away in 2011 after 33 yearsof service at Lamar. Myers was the advisorfor incoming freshman. His inspiring attitudeand presence are missed greatly by facultyand students alike.Dr. Peggy DoerschukLamar University’s Students Advancingthrough Involvement in Research Student8Talent Expansion Program (STAIRSTEP) issuccessfully recruiting, retaining andtransitioning undergraduates majoring inChemistry, Computer Science, Geosciences,Mathematics and Physics. The project isfunded by a five-year one million dollar grantfrom the National Science Foundation thatstarted January 1, 2009. This is the final yearof the program. Small teams ofundergraduates majoring in these disciplinesare paid a competitive stipend to participatein research and outreach under the directionof a faculty mentor in their discipline. Teamscan include freshmen through seniors. Themore advanced students mentor, tutor andtrain the less experienced students. Theundergraduate STAIRSTEP students presenttheir research at professional meetings andconferences. Several have won awards fortheir research presentations. In their K-14outreach activities, STAIRSTEP students andfaculty mentors have interacted withthousands of students, educators, andothers.The Chemistry STAIRSTEP team performsresearch in computational chemistry andchemical education under the direction ofAssociate Professor of ChemistryChristopher Martin. The Computer Scienceteam performs research in artificialintelligence, robotics and computer scienceeducation under the direction of UniversityProfessor of Computer Science PeggyDoerschuk, who also directs the STAIRSTEPprogram. The Geosciences team performsresearch on subsidence and storm surgesunder the direction of Associate Professor ofGeophysics Joseph Kruger. The Math teamperforms research on properties of the Ggraph of a group under the direction ofAssociate Professor of Mathematics JenniferDaniel, who also serves as Associate Directorof STAIRSTEP. The Physics team performsresearch in optics and photonics under thedirection of Associate Professor of PhysicsCristian Bahrim. Judith Mann, AssociateProfessor of Psychology, directs theassessment of the program.As of spring 2013, 86 undergraduatesparticipated in the STAIRSTEP program.Over 89% of the participants have beenretained in their STEM major. SinceSTAIRSTEP started, first time in collegefreshmen enrolling in the five STAIRSTEPdisciplines has increased by 97%, andundergraduate majors in the five disciplineshave increased 50%. Thirty-threeundergraduate participants have graduatedthus far, and 88% have been transitioned tocareers or advanced study in STEM within 6months of graduation.

LAMAR UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES Issue 19News from Earth & Space SciencesWith these promising results “we took aGeiger counter into the Smithsonianmuseum collections to find ‘hot’ megalodonteeth to borrow for analysis in the LamarPhysics Radiation Lab,” Westgate said.The team was granted access to fossilradioactive megalodon shark teeth in thecollection of the Smithsonian Institution'sNational Museum of Natural History. Themuseum will loan Lamar about 20 teethranging in age from 4 million to 150 millionyears.A Permanent Global Positioning System(GPS) antenna was installed at the Geologybuilding in 2013. The antenna links LamarUniversity with a global network of groundbased antenna. The device enablesmeasurement of ground elevation to within acentimeter, according to department chairDr. Jim Jordan. The antenna, fundedthrough the university HEAF allocation, willenable students to conduct research intoplate tectonics and even measure the rate ofsinkage of the Texas coastline.Lamar faculty and students at theSmithsonian museumDr. Jim Westgate, Professor of Earth andSpace Sciences and Regents ProfessorAward nominee, traveled to WashingtonD.C. during spring break 2013 to participatein testing a novel new approach to datingfossils. Joining Westgate were Dr. GeorgeIrwin, Associate Professor of Physics, and Dr.Jim Jordan, Chair of the Department of Earthand Space Sciences. Students participating inthe research were Christine Gartner, seniorgeology major from Beaumont, physicsmajors Jason Dark, a junior from Beaumont,and Joshua Kamienski, a senior fromHouston.Radiocarbon dating is well established as thego-to method for determining the age oforganic material. However, this method onlyyields results back to about 50,000 years, andtherefore isn’t used to date older fossils,according to Westgate. Typically, fossilsolder than 50,000 years are dated based onigneous or metamorphic rocks that areassociated with the fossils, or by rareassociations of fossils with radiometricallydatable materials.Lamar’s physics team spent several weeksdoing preliminary analysis of fossilmegalodon and mammoth teeth ranging inage from 13,000 to 70 million years old.“Preliminary results indicate we might beable to extend the direct age dating processto 30- or 40-million years,” Westgate said.Teachers at Lamar workshop on theNeches riverLamar University’s Department of Earth andSpace Sciences 18th annual TeachingEnvironmental Science summer instituteintroduced Southeast Texas EC-12 teachersto local environmental issues through firsthand experiences. The participantsconcluded the two-week course on theNeches River July 19 where they learnedabout a state program to rehabilitate theBessie Heights marsh.The 10-day field institute is offered inconjunction with the Region 5 ScienceCollaborative, local industries, state andfederal agencies, and environmental nongovernmental organizations. Using airboatsand a Coast Guard vessel, the teachers sawhow the marshland elevation is raised andprotected from future oil spills and saltwater.During the program, the teachers exploredand/or studied environmental habitats in theGolden Triangle, including the Shangri LaBotanical Gardens and Nature Center andthe Big Thicket National Preserve. Since itsinception, more than 150,000 Texas studentshave taken courses from teachers who haveexperienced the institute.Geospatial CenterThe Lamar Geospatial Center, a state-ofthe-art computer laboratory located in theGeology building, received a three-quarter ofa million dollar grant to upgrade software.The upgrade includes seismic datainterpretation software. The GeospatialCenter was established as a result of aDepartment of Defense fundingcollaboration with Stephen F. AustinUniversity in 2008-2010.Byron Dyer (Lamar class of ’57)Houston Museum of Natural Sciencespresident Joel Bartsch provided Lamar withan 88-piece mineral exhibit on permanentloan to Lamar from the museum in 2007. Afriend of Bartsch’s, Lamar Geology alumnusByron Dyer, was instrumental in helpingnegotiate the loan. Lamar University greatlyappreciates Mr. Dyer and everything he hasdone to help build Lamar.

LAMAR UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES Issue 110Lamar University Hallway Mineral Exhibit fromthe Houston Museum of Natural Science88 SpecimensFrom 11 states, 17 countries, 38 locationsHoursWeekdays 9 am – 5 pmGeology BuildingSpecial tours:(409) 880-8236

LAMAR UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES Issue 1News fromEnglish & ModernLanguagesThe Texas Institute of Letters has honoredJim Sanderson, Professor and chair with theKay Cattarulla Award for short-story writing.Sanderson has served as chair since 2012 andhas been at Lamar for 25 years. Sanderson’saward-winning story, “Bankers,” waspublished in Descant, the literary journal ofTexas Christian University.Castillon is the 27th recipient of the honor –one of the highest accorded a Lamar facultymember. A committee of faculty, staff,students and community representativesmakes the selection.The institute is considered the mostprestigious literary organization in Texas.The award was presented Saturday, April 6,at its annual meeting in San Marcos. Theaward recognizes the best short story writtenby a Texan or about Texas.Mr. Garry RichardsPulse, Lamar University's student-createdDr. Catalina CastillonDr. Catalina Castillon, Associate Professorof English & Modern Languages, has beenselected as the Distinguished FacultyLecturer for 2013. A resident of Beaumont,Castillon has been a member of the Lamarfaculty since 1991.“Hispanic Literary Heritage: An AmericanExperience” is the topic of her lecture,sponsored by ExxonMobil, to be presentedthis fall in the University Theatre at a date tobe announced. The Lamar University FacultySenate

LAMAR UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES Issue 1 Lamar University College of Arts & Sciences Newsletter Fall 2013 BIOLOGY FACULTY AND STUDENTS DURING SUMMER TRIP TO BELIZE PAGE 2 IN THIS ISSUE Welcome to the inaugural College of Arts and Sciences Newsletter for 2013-2014. In the spirit of sharing, the Newsletter is designed to highlight the unfolding news and events that will shape our .